


One Hundred Percent

by Saavikam77



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Genre: ColdAtom Week 2016, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-26
Updated: 2016-04-26
Packaged: 2018-06-04 17:23:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,997
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6667672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Saavikam77/pseuds/Saavikam77
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ray didn't believe in soul mates, but he and Len could fake it for the sake of the mission, couldn't they?</p>
            </blockquote>





	One Hundred Percent

**Author's Note:**

> In which Ray and Kendra haven't told anyone they broke up yet, and Ray is not-so-subtly attracted to Len.
> 
> For Coldatom Week 2016 on tumblr, Day 1: Soulmates.

“There's just one catch.”

Standing just outside the circle of teammates surrounding the center console, Ray waited expectantly for Rip to finish. As if this day could get any worse than them being in desperate need up an updated data packet and the only source being a bizarre cult that'd split off from the Time Masters. Ray had run the numbers, and yeah, it could get a lot worse, but they really needed a win today.

“Their only purpose is to ensure that soul mates are brought together,” Rip finally went on. “Nothing else in the time stream matters to them. So, they've asked that we send the pair of soul mates that currently resides aboard the ship. For a … ceremony, of sorts.”

Ray sighed heavily as groans rose up around the control room. Jax even face-palmed. This was bad. This was worse than bad. No one even knew—

Kendra, unfortunately, was the one that spoke up. “But there aren't any soul mates on board. At least not since Carter died, and … well,” she stopped, looking back at Ray helplessly.

He shook his head minutely. They didn't need to know that she and Ray were done, that it'd been over a week since they'd broken off their engagement, both of them realizing that they wanted other things, and that what they'd had wasn't working anymore. They didn't need to know that she'd already moved out of his cabin and back to her own, keeping her comings and goings from the rest of the crew.

Sara looked back and forth between them then, and started, “Remember what we talked about before, Kendra? We make our own fate. Why don't you and Ray go? I mean, if you're gonna be married and all, why not?”

Ray noticed Kendra wince at the suggestion, her left hand reflexively tightening where she still wore his ring to keep up appearances, and he couldn't just let her stand there alone against the rest of them, and this increasingly insane mission. Slipping his arm around her waist, he put on a smile that he certainly didn't feel. “I don't see why that couldn't work,” he said quickly. “I mean, soul mates don't have to be destined for reincarnation and all that, right?” Not that he believed in soul mates outside of Kendra and Carter's situation, anyway. Chaos Theory didn't allow for things like that.

Rip cut in then, shaking his head, “No, no, it doesn't work that way. You see, with their access to the timeline, they know exactly who's destined to be with whom, what the probabilities are, and they won't accept anything less than a couple who's probability is gradually nearing one hundred percent. Khufu and Shayara are already destiny, so Kendra, Mister Palmer, I'm afraid they won't accept you as soul mates.”

Just as Ray felt a rush of relief that they didn't have to pretend for this particular mission, Sara threw up her arms and suggested, “Okay, so, we've just gotta figure out who here has the highest probability of getting together. If anybody here has feelings for someone else in the room, speak now, or … I guess we're screwed.”

Dubious looks came from all sides, and Stein spoke up. “Well, I'm certain I'm out. My soul mate is safe and sound in 2016. And Captain Hunter is out as well.”

Sara added, “I'm gonna go out on a limb and say it's not me, either. Sorry, but none of you boys are my type. I kinda see you guys as brothers, anyway.” She leaned with her palms against the center console. “So, who's it gonna be? All we got left is Snart, Mick, Ray, and Jax.”

At the pointed look from Sara, Jax held up a hand defensively. “Nope. I'm out. Ladies' man through and through. No offense, fellas.”

“I'm with Sara and the kid,” Mick grunted as he glanced sideways at Len—Ray had stopped thinking of him as Snart—and he crossed his arms over his chest.

“Wait, can it be platonic?” Kendra asked Rip then. “Because we all know these two are partners in crime forever and ever.”

Rip shook his head again. “Sorry, no. If only it were that simple.”

Silence fell over the crew as all eyes turned to Len, and then Ray, who was edging away slowly, his arm slipping from Kendra's waist. They didn't know. They couldn't.

A grin grew over Sara's face. “Anything you boys want to share?”

“Not a thing,” Len said from where he'd leaned against a bulkhead, his arms loosely crossed and his expression daring someone to call him a liar.

Ray felt his face start to redden. Sinking into the nearest chair, he glanced up at Kendra, who only shrugged, frowning. This whole soul mates thing was insane. Ray might've once believed, when he'd been with Anna, but since then … no, the universe was too complex. And now was not the time for the rest of the crew to find out what had been the nail in the coffin for him and Kendra. That while she wanted to find Carter, Ray wanted … God help him … Len. They'd done nothing, of course, Ray would never, but—

He and Len had been working on the cold gun, matching some of its systems to the ATOM suit so various sorts of weaponry could be switched out as needed. They'd been leaning close together over the gun, Ray showing Len a particular component, when Sara had walked in. It'd been completely innocent, and they'd all laughed it off, but Ray hadn't been able to help a blush, his skin hot where his shoulder had brushed against Len's. The mere thought of it had caught him off-guard, and later that night, what Ray did in the shower hadn't been so innocent at all, all the things he'd never dared think suddenly in the forefront of his mind.

A few days later, his relationship with Kendra had come to an end.

The whole situation now felt like the universe was playing a horrible joke on him, just to watch him crumble under the scrutiny of his teammates.

Composing himself as he felt them watching him closely, he ran a hand through his hair. “Okay,” he said slowly, resigning himself to the inevitable, even if he had to lie through his teeth to their friends about what was going on inside his head. “What do we have to do?” He looked at Len, then at Rip. Just because he had an attraction didn't mean they were meant to be. Right? “And what if they know we're faking it?”

Rip gave the pair a small smile. “They'll know the second you enter the temple. If we're lucky, they'll just send you back to try again. If not … I daresay we won't get what we're here for.”

Len spoke up, “And what if they say we're _not_ faking it?”

Ray swallowed hard. What if they … oh crap, everyone was gonna know. _Len_ was gonna know. As if that didn't make him feel like an infatuated teenage girl.

Rip answered, “Then, like I said, there's a ceremony. From what I've heard, it's … well, it's rather intimate.”

Looking at Ray with a mischievous glint in his eyes, Len drawled, “Count me in.”

Ray dropped his head into his hands, heaving a sigh. Things were about to get so much worse.

~*~*~

Walking into the temple with Len at his side, both of them dressed in suits appropriate for the time period, Ray swallowed the steadily growing lump in his throat. This could go bad in so many ways. He checked the mike in his earpiece, tapping it twice.

“We're online, Mister Palmer,” Rip's voice came back. “All you have to do follow their lead, and secure the data packet. We'll be watching.”

Of the last part, Ray was certain … and kind of terrified. What if they had to … to … the crew would know for sure. And what did it even mean that he and Len had made it inside the temple without being turned away? Ray still wasn't about to believe in soul mates.

But as things seemed to be going well, Ray let himself relax just a little, and the pair were greeted with gracious, gleaming smiles. Handshakes were exchanged, introductions were made, and Len had his hand at the small of Ray's back, an actual smile on his face. The contact was … warm, and not at all unwelcome. Ray shivered at the touch, surprised at his reaction.

Len leaned close and whispered in his ear, “Save it for the ceremony, Boy Scout.”

Ray could only nod in return, and plastered on his own smile as the two of them were ushered into what seemed to be a small banquet hall. Tables and chairs were arranged like it was some sort of small reception, with a central area cleared for what Ray hoped was dancing, and a head table that he and Len were led to. There was no sign of any ceremonial platform, no plush pillows, no strange equipment or spotlights or gongs, nothing Ray might've counted as weird. He sighed with relief as they took their seats. Maybe Rip had been wrong about the whole intimacy angle. This just looked like some of the smaller charity dinners he'd hosted as the head of PalmerTech.

And, as fancy dinners went, this one turned out to be pretty good. There was food, wine, music, and conversation with oddly interesting people about eddies in the time stream, paradoxical flux, and fixing the past, to which they subscribed to the theory that everything could be fixed when soul mates were united. Ray still wasn't convinced, as his past could attest to, but at this point, he wasn't about to argue. They needed that data packet.

The afternoon wore on, dessert was served, a little more wine was drunk, and people started dancing to the classical music that'd been playing since they came in. Still nothing weird, nothing out of the ordinary, and Ray felt a little more at ease with the whole thing.

Just as Ray was truly letting his guard down, though, Len rose from his chair and extended his hand. “May I have this dance?”

Ray looked up at him, raising an eyebrow as the pit of his stomach fluttered involuntarily. “Since when do you know how to dance?”

Len smirked. “Humor me.”

So Ray did, taking his hand and letting himself be led out to the dance floor. He even followed Len's lead as they began to dance, their bodies close, Len's breath on his neck. It was … nice. That hand was at the small of his back again, and a shiver shot up Ray's spine. All he could think of were those long fingers, and what they might be capable of. He'd seen them at work on locks and alarms, seen what they could do to lift a wallet or a key card, and now he wondered—

Taking in a sharp breath, Ray shook his head. There was no time for this, no time to get fuzzy-headed and wax poetic about fingers. And when did they get so close that they were practically melted together in their dance? Ray could feel the heat of Len's body against his, could see the smolder in those goddamn eyes, a whole life written into crystal blue irises, past and present. A million snarky comments waiting to be unloaded like the ice in his cold gun. A world full of pain and loss and hope and love and—

Ray couldn't concentrate no matter how hard he tried to shake off whatever seemed to be happening. He needed to get his head on straight. He needed … he didn't know what he needed. Or what he wanted. All he knew was that he felt like he was falling into an abyss. This was too much to take. He felt more vulnerable than he ever had in his life, as if his whole being was on display for Len to see.

Unable to tear his gaze away from those sparkling eyes, Ray realized Len's smirk had fallen into a tight-lipped look of distress as they danced, even closer now if that was possible. Could Len be feeling this strange pull, too? Did he see the same things in Ray's eyes as Ray saw in his? Was he suddenly consumed with terror at the thought that this whole thing might be real after all? That this cult actually had things figured out?

That they might actually be soul mates?

And what did it even mean? Didn't this constitute a self-fulfilling prophecy? A time paradox? Ray's mind spun with the implications, even as his hind-brain reminded him of those fingers at his back, and what Ray wanted them to do to him, what he wanted Len to do to him, what he wanted to do to Len in return.

But he was shaken out of his reverie then as Len huffed out a breath through his nose, a glare having replaced his look of distress. They were still dancing, but the room felt like it was spinning, tilting.

Len broke their gaze to whisper in his ear, “We've been drugged.”

Oh. Well, that explained some things. But that was the last thought he had before the world turned silver, then gray, then black, falling away into nothing.

~*~*~

Ray's head felt like Len had iced him. Coming up from the darkness, he blinked, wincing at the sudden light. God, who'd turned on the sun right in front of his eyes?

“You okay over there, Boy Scout?”

He stilled at the voice, and Ray cautiously opened one eye, squinting. On the neighboring bed in the med bay, Len was propped up on an elbow, watching him like a cat waiting for breakfast.

“Please tell me that was all a dream,” Ray croaked, his voice hoarse and throat dry. He closed his eye against the light again, and threw an arm over his face.

Len laughed coarsely. “Not even remotely.”

“Wha—what happened?” Ray asked, keeping his voice low to avoid upsetting the spike in his temple.

“They used psychedelics on us. Made us see things. And it dropped us like rocks in the middle of the floor. We got the data packet, though, so there's that.”

Psychedelics. Yeah, that put everything into perspective.

Groaning low in his throat, Ray lowered his arm and sat up in the bed, slowly blinking. “Gideon, a little help here, please?” he said plaintively.

The lights dimmed a little, and Gideon said, “You need to continue to rest, Doctor Palmer. I've given you as much assistance as I can.”

That sounded about right, too. Even in the future, there was no cure for a hangover.

Rubbing his eyes with the palms of his hands, Ray took a few slow, deep breaths. Now that he was clear headed, as much as he could be in his current state, he needed to figure things out.

He turned to Len, catching his gaze again, those eyes now bloodshot and exhausted. “I take it we were rescued, then?”

“Rip, Sara, and Mick brought us back to the ship. And while Rip installed the new data packet, Stein had to keep the others from going back down there for a little payback.” He paused, tilting his head even more than usual, an eyebrow lifted. “Kendra told everyone you two broke up.” 

Oh, right. Ray felt a sting of shame color his cheeks. “Um. Yeah. She moved out about a week ago,” he admitted quietly. He really didn't want to hash all that out again, though, so he settled for the simplest explanation and a shrug. “It was inevitable. We just didn't work.”

Len hummed, nodding slowly.

Ray couldn't help the thought then that while that was all in the past now, this was, too. “So, Kendra and I were never soul mates. And … we're not soul mates, either,” he started cautiously. “Just a couple of dupes that got drugged.” Ray felt nauseated. He believed in science and reason, not soul mates, so why couldn't he shake this?

Len smirked. “Didn't say that. After inspecting the new data, Rip said the timeline had cemented. That the probability of you and me being together went from something like sixty-two percent all the way to one hundred. Something about symmetry and time wanting to happen and a bunch of other nonsense that I'm sure you'll understand. He said that what those people do actually works … when it's needed.”

At that, Ray felt his jaw drop, his mouth gaping. “We … needed that?” he sputtered.

“Apparently. He said something else about opening up avenues that hadn't quite worked their way up to the conscious mind. Hence the psychedelics.”

Huh. Ray blinked a few times, watching the way Len pushed himself up from the bed, sitting like he was ready to pounce at any moment.

“So … what worked its way up to your conscious mind? What did you see?” he asked, not quite sure he was reading Len correctly, even as a hopeful spark danced on his nerves.

“What do you think, Raymond?” Len replied, his voice low and dangerous, full of promises. “You honestly thought you were the only one?”

It took him a few seconds to register what Len had said, the reality of it sinking in, and finally that hopeful spark exploded in Ray's chest. He couldn't help the smile that tugged up the corners of his mouth, and before he could stop himself, he'd crossed the space between their beds and had Len's face in his hands. “Are you sure?”

“What part of one hundred percent don't you understand?” And then Len was kissing him, pulling him close, as close as they'd been as they'd danced. Their kiss was heated, deep, everything Ray had been waiting for. It was perfect.

He might never believe in soul mates, but the timeline didn't lie. He and Len were meant to be.

~*~*~


End file.
